


Time and Tide

by surgicalfocus



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Fluff, M/M, Romance, Selkies, Slice of Life, Supernatural Elements
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-01
Updated: 2018-08-01
Packaged: 2019-06-20 02:00:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,563
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15523602
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/surgicalfocus/pseuds/surgicalfocus
Summary: On a warm midsummer’s day, Chanyeol comes to pay Baekhyun a long-awaited visit. (Tyranny of Distance bonus chapter)





	Time and Tide

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! This is just a little bonus chapter for my fic The Tyranny of Distance, since I know the bittersweet ending left a few people feeling a bit sad. It’s nothing groundbreaking, so don’t expect too much, but I hope it makes you smile. Enjoy! xx

 

 _Below is a mini playlist for this chapter, which includes an original song inspired by this AU, composed and performed by the exceptionally talented[@Anguloauniflora](https://twitter.com/Anguloauniflora) _ _\-- I highly recommend giving it a listen because it is absolutely incredible and it maybe (okay, definitely) made me cry T_______T_

 

  * [The Tyranny of Distance - Anguloauniflora ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HEU7G48ZxfA&feature=youtu.be)


  * [Time and Tide - Paul Kelly](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XNJ0LfHg178)


  * [The First Thing You See - Bruno Major ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TiQqA9z59E8)


  * [Slip Into Your Skin - Patrick Watson](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s9NdFVts7Yg)



 

 

_____________

 

_Yet is there hope. Time and tide flow wide._

_— Herman Melville, ‘Moby Dick, or The Whale’_

 

☆ﾟ･｡°*. ﾟ☆ﾟ

 

He might have forgotten if it weren’t for Taeyeon’s letter.

It arrived in a bright red envelope, at the very top of the pile of post that came with the fortnightly supply delivery. As soon as the boat pulled away from the jetty, Baekhyun tore the envelope open and began to read. In the letter, Taeyeon asked him how he had been (well enough), and if he had seen his friend Moby (not recently). Then she asked him about his Christmas plans for the year, since it was fast approaching. Christmas had barely crossed Baekhyun’s mind until that moment, but she was right: it was only a week away.

What plans _could_ he make, he thought, folding the letter into his pocket with a sigh. It was depressing, the mere thought of going back to Ayr just to spend another holiday season without his family. Surely he would be better off staying where he was. But Christmas approaching also meant that midsummer was approaching… and midsummer approaching meant —

Suddenly Baekhyun’s eyes widened in realisation. He hurried back to the lighthouse with the two supply crates stacked on top of each other, trying not to trip over his own feet. “Guess who’ll be visiting us soon,” he sang out when Jim enthusiastically greeted him at the front door. His hands were shaking so much that he almost dropped the crates on his way to the kitchen, where he dumped them both on top of the table.

How could he have forgotten? He almost wanted to kick himself for it. But then it wasn’t like it had slipped his mind altogether; he had always known that _The Day_ was coming. It was just that he’d been waiting so long by now that he no longer kept a close eye on the date. Each day at the lighthouse was so similar to the one before it that they all seemed to blur into one another: Baekhyun extinguished the lamp at sun-up, reported on the weather, and spent the rest of the morning doing whatever maintenance work was the most urgent on his list. Then he would fall asleep for a couple of hours in the afternoon, drag himself out of bed to light up for the evening watch, and repeat the process all over again. Living in a place like Redhill Island, it was sometimes too easy to forget that time even passed at all.

The next few days, though, were a flutter of nervous excitement. Baekhyun knew that the date of midsummer wasn’t fixed; in the south it usually fell within the few days leading up to Christmas. On the morning of December 20th he was too anxious to be hungry, making breakfast only out of habit. He’d spent the day before cleaning the lighthouse from top to bottom in preparation for Chanyeol’s arrival, and every muscle still ached with the effort. He had a stomach full of butterflies that revolted at every mouthful of food he forced down, and the fact that the eggs came out too dry didn’t help much. He still really missed Chanyeol’s cooking. Giving up, he scraped the rest of the eggs into Jim’s bowl, and went upstairs to report on the weather.

He hurried down to the beach shortly before midday, where he sat on the sand to wait. He’d scrubbed up and put on a clean shirt and shorts, and braided some flowers into his hair like Chanyeol used to do. He wanted to look nice, just in case. He had no real way of knowing if today would be the day, but if it was, then he would be ready.

In the end he hung around as long as he could, even forgoing his afternoon nap so that he could sit on the sand to wait a bit longer. But Chanyeol didn’t show up that day — in any form, human or seal. Nor did he show up the next day, on the 21st. On the 22nd, instead of spending his free time fishing or reading, Baekhyun scoured the beach and the rocks for a glimpse of his seal-mate’s sweet whiskered face, but couldn’t find him anywhere. He often bumped into Chanyeol on his wanderings around the island, and the seal always seemed happy to see him; but now there was no sign of him at all.

 _____  
_ _ _ _ _ On the 23rd of December, he trudged back down to the beach again, parking himself listlessly on the sand. It _had_ to be today, he told himself… it just had to. But what if it wasn’t? He had barely slept at all over the past few days, and he was exhausted. He had to stay awake, to keep watch; but he had been keeping watch all through the night, and though the excitement fizzing in his veins had been enough to keep him alert at first, he had now well and truly come down from that high.

It really was unlike Chanyeol not to show up for days on end. The growing concern and disappointment was an ache in Baekhyun’s chest, a sour taste in his mouth. He had flowers in his hair again, pink happy wanderers from one of Chanyeol’s plants. There were a handful of seals on the beach that day, but none of them were him; Baekhyun wondered if any of them were selkies. A seagull landed on the back of one of them, and it lazily rolled over until the pesky bird took flight again.

It was a hot day, and the air was heavy and still, which made Baekhyun feel even more tired. He stifled a yawn with the palm of his hand. Maybe if he just rested for a minute or two…

_____ _ _ _

He woke up a little later, realising that he must have dozed off. Then he noticed the presence of something warm nestled against his side, a long arm thrown across his body. Blinking the sleep away from his eyes, he propped himself up on one elbow to investigate.

There was the long, lithe figure of a man lying beside him on the sand, cuddled up to him, naked but for the grey sealskin knotted around his waist. His long hair was plastered to his face, partly obscuring it. He appeared to be sound asleep, and Baekhyun wondered how long he had been lying there; he smiled to himself, pushing the hair away from Chanyeol’s eyes. It was still wet. He couldn’t have been ashore for very long.

At the touch of his hand, Chanyeol stirred and lifted his head, blinking at Baekhyun through heavy eyelids. He was even more handsome than Baekhyun remembered. There was sand stuck to his hair and the side of his face. He opened his mouth to say something, but Baekhyun beat him to it, shushing him with a finger pressed against his lips.

“Kiss me first,” he whispered; he smiled again as he brushed some of the sand away, leaning down until their noses touched. His skin tingled at the warmth of Chanyeol’s breath, the heat of his body, his closeness. What difference would it make to hold back for a few seconds more? “Kiss me and _then_ we can talk.”

Chanyeol nodded in silence, his eyes fluttering closed. With one hand on the back of Baekhyun’s head, he pulled him downwards, meeting him halfway. His kiss was warm, slow, soft; the taste of his lips faintly salty like the sea, just like Baekhyun remembered it. How could he forget, when he’d had nothing else to console himself during those first few unbearably lonely months -- only endless replays of bittersweet memories. Chanyeol had yet to speak, but that kiss marked the end of half a year’s silence; at the prompting of Baekhyun’s tongue he opened up a little wider, sighing deeply into the kiss, as though he hadn’t breathed in a very long time. Baekhyun knew what that felt like.

“I’ve been dying to do that for so long… you have no idea,” Chanyeol said at last; his voice was a little hoarse, which Baekhyun attributed to the fact that he hadn’t spoken for several months. He smiled, rubbing his nose against Baekhyun’s before kissing him again. “I feel so much lighter now.”

Baekhyun paused for a moment just to breathe Chanyeol in, brushing their parted lips together. He knew Chanyeol liked it when he teased him like that, and felt the resulting groan as much as he heard it, a low rumble all through his lover's body. “You taste like the sea,” he whispered, smiling against Chanyeol’s lips.

Chanyeol laughed softly. “What else would I taste like?”

“When did you get here? And why didn’t you wake me?”

“I haven’t been here too long. I was just walking up the beach when I found you lying here, fast asleep... you looked so sweet, too.” Chanyeol yawned cutely, stretching his arms above his head. “I thought I’d lie down next to you and watch you sleep for a while, but I suppose I must have nodded off.” As soon as he said this, he pulled Baekhyun on top of him and began kissing him again. “God, I’ve missed you so much.”

Baekhyun felt the cool wetness of Chanyeol’s sealskin soaking through his clothes, but in all the places where Chanyeol’s body touched his, he felt warm. He let out a sound of mild protest, a cross between a whine and a giggle. “Now I’m all wet too, you pest.”

“And? Is that a bad thing?” Chanyeol’s hands travelled slowly down the sides of Baekhyun’s body, coming to rest on either side of his bottom. He gave it a playful squeeze through Baekhyun’s faded denim shorts. “I’ve really missed this bum, as well.”

“Stop that,” Baekhyun said, even though he secretly enjoyed it. Not that it was much of a secret. “My bum and I have really missed you too.”

Chanyeol picked out one of the little pink blossoms from Baekhyun’s hair and brought it to his nose, inhaling deeply. “I see you’ve been taking care of my flowers… and your hair’s much longer now, too. I approve.”

“It wasn’t something I planned. I just haven’t been bothered to cut it.”  Baekhyun took the flower away from Chanyeol and put it in his hair instead, twisting a lock of it around the stem to keep it in place. “My pretty darling,” he whispered, smiling.

“It’s so hot today… why do you even need this shirt?” With a little hum of contentment, Chanyeol pushed Baekhyun’s collar aside and began to kiss the little bare patch of shoulder peeping through. “And these shorts… they’re no good either. They’ll have to go.”

“Some of us like to wear clothes, you know, instead of frolicking around naked all the time.” Baekhyun could feel his lips twitching at the corners again. He’d almost forgotten what that felt like — properly smiling. He wasn’t unhappy at all, these days, but he also didn’t smile very often. Today, though… surely his face would start to hurt soon, he was smiling so much.

Chanyeol pouted, but Baekhyun could tell it was only in jest. “Don’t you want me too?”

“Well, that depends.” Baekhyun tapped a finger against his chin, pretending to look pensive. “How many seals have you been cavorting with while you were away?”

“None. My body and mind and heart are all spoken for,” Chanyeol said. “And I wasn’t away... I was around here the whole time. I never left.”

It was true, Baekhyun thought; up until the past few days, he always _had_ been there. There were times when he wished Chanyeol was out at sea somewhere instead, enjoying the free life he should have been living; but at the same time, a part of him was secretly overjoyed that his love refused to leave him. Chanyeol had once been confined to the island against his will, but now it was his own choice to stay. That was something he’d decided for himself.

“You’re supposed to be free now, you know,” Baekhyun mused, wondering aloud. “Why do you insist on being stuck here with me?”

“Because staying here with you _is_ freedom, to me.” Chanyeol leaned in to nuzzle the crook of Baekhyun’s neck, covering it in soft kisses. “Now take me to our bed, mister Redhill keeper. I want you to show me how much you’ve been missing me.”

 

☆ﾟ･｡°*. ﾟ☆ﾟ

 

The golden light of the afternoon, parting the curtains with its glowing fingers -- perhaps a beautiful sight to some, but one that Baekhyun himself dreaded. The afternoon was the lighthouse-keeper’s morning, and its arrival meant he had to drag himself out of bed after barely a few hours’ sleep, and head upstairs to begin the night-watch on his own.

But that afternoon, for once, he wasn’t alone. Chanyeol was there in his arms, his face partly buried against Baekhyun’s neck. His skin, like his lips, had tasted of the sea when Baekhyun kissed him all over; it felt warm from the sunlight pouring in through the gap in the curtains, and Baekhyun ran his hands over it, relishing the texture of it beneath his fingertips.

He closed his eyes and smiled, tucking away another lovely little memory for safekeeping. How beautiful Chanyeol had looked, losing himself so completely in Baekhyun’s love; he had been so breathtaking that Baekhyun felt constantly torn between two overwhelming desires -- wanting to kiss him, and wanting to just lie there and look at him. In the end Chanyeol made the decision for him, pulling Baekhyun’s head down for another hungry kiss, breathing hard into his mouth. He was gorgeous, and Baekhyun couldn’t get nearly enough of him. Not in the time they had. Not in any amount of time.

“Talk to me, love,” he whispered. He gently combed his fingers through Chanyeol’s hair to rouse him again, teasing out a few saltwater tangles while he was at it. “No falling asleep... I want to know what you’ve been doing, where you’ve been. I’m sick of only hearing the sound of my own voice.”

Chanyeol chuckled softly. He leaned in to press a wet kiss against the side of Baekhyun’s face, just beneath his ear. “Well, I’m not. I love hearing your sexy voice.”

“You can hear my sexy voice whenever you want. I never get to hear yours.” For a long time, Baekhyun had wondered if it was a crazy thing to do -- talking to a seal-person who couldn’t answer back. At first he had felt a bit silly talking to Chanyeol in his seal form; it was still a small comfort to do so, but the conversation was so painfully one-sided, even though he knew Chanyeol understood everything he was saying.

Chanyeol let out a soft little sigh, and laid his head on Baekhyun’s chest again. “I know I’m free now, and I should be happy… but sometimes I really hate being this slippery, wet creature who can’t love you in the way you deserve. Don’t you ever wish that things were different?”

“No,” Baekhyun whispered. “Why would I?”

Chanyeol lifted his head again, throwing Baekhyun a skeptical look. His hair was adorably messed up, and Baekhyun smiled, reaching up to smooth it down a bit.

“I love you,” he said, tenderly pushing a few strands of hair away from Chanyeol’s face. “And it’s because I love you that I wouldn’t change a single thing about you.”

“You wouldn’t?” Chanyeol leaned into his touch, but he still laughed at Baekhyun like he didn’t believe him. “Lies, surely...”

“If being human meant that you wouldn’t be the same Chanyeol I fell for, then no, I wouldn’t change anything,” Baekhyun said quietly. “Don’t you believe me?”

With an exaggerated sigh, Chanyeol flopped down next to him on the bed. “I only want to make you happy... I really hate the thought of you being lonely -- of you missing me. Especially if it’s anywhere near the same amount that I miss you.” He took one of Baekhyun’s hands and held it to his lips, kissing the tip of every finger. “Because I always do,” he whispered. “I miss you constantly — desperately. Not simply seeing you, because I see you all the time, but... holding you. Kissing you. I miss being close to you, just like this.”

“And I miss you too, very much. Always.” With an arm around Chanyeol’s waist, Baekhyun pulled him in closer until their faces were only inches apart. “But you know what? I can still be happy by myself. Until I met you, I never thought that was possible — learning to be happy on my own.” He smiled at the way Chanyeol clearly had trouble looking away from his lips. “But I still need something to look forward to every now and then.”

“Like me?” Chanyeol whispered. He sounded hopeful, which Baekhyun found adorable.

“Like you.” Baekhyun tapped Chanyeol on the end of his nose, smiling at the face he made in response. “And the sex, of course. But mostly you,” he added, crying out with laughter when Chanyeol pinned him down on the bed and began a slow, ticklish trail of kisses down his body, murmuring _“my turn now”_ against his skin.

 

☆ﾟ･｡°*. ﾟ☆ﾟ

 

They went back to the beach for a swim in the early evening, mucking around together in the shallows. It was the longest day of the year, and the sun would not begin to set until later; they were blessed to have this extra time, Baekhyun thought. Midwinter was going to be a challenge, but he would worry about that when the time came.

When they finally emerged from the water, Baekhyun pushed Chanyeol down into the sand and kissed him again, long and slow and open-mouthed, tasting his saltwater breath.

“The tide’s coming in,” Chanyeol whispered. He sounded slightly breathless, cupping one side of Baekhyun’s face with a trembling hand.

“So? Let it.” Baekhyun could feel the sea beginning to lap at their feet, but he didn’t care.

“You should be heading back. It’ll get dark soon.”

“No. Not yet.” Baekhyun knew he could be stubborn, and this was one of those times when he truly felt it. He pinned Chanyeol firmly against the sand, holding him down so that he couldn’t leave. “Please, let me have my time with you. We don’t get enough of it.” The sealskin lay just beyond them, folded neatly, a grey blur in his peripheral vision. He couldn’t even bring himself to look at it. And only when Chanyeol’s lips were against his ear, whispering his desires, begging Baekhyun to kiss him again… only then was Baekhyun satisfied that leaving was the furthest thing from his lover’s mind, at least for the moment.

There would probably never be enough time, he thought, as they held each other tight for a little while longer. Time and tide waited for no one. But time kept ticking, and the tide would eventually roll back in again, and the sea surrounding them on all sides was endless.

Now Chanyeol’s skin was glowing in the peach-gold light of the newly setting sun. The time had come. Baekhyun looked down at him, silently drinking in his beauty, and hoping that Chanyeol could see the love in his eyes; that it was enough to make up for the words he could no longer seem to find. He kissed the tip of his index finger and brought it to Chanyeol’s lips, smiling when Chanyeol kissed it too. “I suppose I’ll see you around, then,” he said.

“Not if I see you first.” Chanyeol took Baekhyun’s hand and held it to his mouth, tenderly whispering _“love of my life”_ into the palm as he kissed it — once, twice, three times, over and over.

 

When they eventually parted, Baekhyun walked away to dress himself, allowing Chanyeol to get back into his sealskin in private. He began to head home along the beach, his heart feeling somehow heavy and light at the same time. Only when he got to the top of the island did he let himself turn around to look: there he was, still sitting on the shore. The little grey head was lifted up in the direction of the lighthouse, watching.

Baekhyun smiled. Holding up his arms, he began to signal I-L-O-V-E-Y-O-U at the seal. Maybe it was a silly thing to do, but he knew that Chanyeol would probably understand the message from his hand positions alone, even if he didn’t have his semaphore flags with him. He stood there waiting until Chanyeol finally disappeared into the water. He knew he wouldn’t cry; he couldn’t really feel it this time, that prickling in his eyes. He could only feel the wind stirring his hair, and that gentle but insistent tug upon his heart as it was pulled out to sea again, back to the place where it had always belonged.

 

 

 

 


End file.
